destructive pup

Question
Hi my dog is a purebred akita, she is almost seven months old.  She is fully
housetrained, yet every time I have to leave her at the house she is put in her
crate and subsequently urinates (and sometimes poos) in the crate.  She eats
all her meals in the crate, and she sleeps in the crate at night.  Even when she
eliminates outside immediately before going in the crate she will have an
accident in there.  We stopped putting her in the crate when we left the house
and for a while everything was fine, she was not destructive at all, but now if
left alone she will tear the place apart (she has developed a taste for hardback
books, quite expensive tastes!).  Today she went one step farther than usual,
I locked her in the crate and put a blanket on top of it because I read that
helps, she pulled the blanket through the crate-door and collapsed the door
inward, therefore opening the crate and letting her run around and chew up
my new book!  So I guess my dilemma is this, when we leave her in the crate
she pees and poos in it (or demolishes the crate and escapes), and when we
leave her out of the crate and free to roam she rips the place apart!  This is so
frustrating, thanks for your input!

Answer
It is amazing how many people, that think they are qualified to give dog advice, don't realize that some dogs will pull a blanket in and shred it.  You are lucky she didn't choke on the pieces.  

Neither I nor anybody else seems to have a good answer to the crate fouling.  Some deny it happens.  Putting a grid in the bottom of the crate makes the urination easier to cope with.  I start new puppies out with one, but usually remove it before too long.  They are available with the crates, but expensive and hard to find. A piece of closely spaced wire closet shelving from a home supply place is cheaper. I am now using a plastic vegetable bin with plenty of holes drilled in the bottom. It helps block off part of the crate for the smaller puppy. If you already have a metal crate, covering it may help. Just make sure you use something the puppy can't pull in and chew. Dogs that start out in crates as little puppies, accept them very well. Never leave an unattended puppy loose in the house. If nobody can watch it, put it in the crate. I suggest letting the dog have its crate all its life. A crate needs to be just big enough for a dog to stretch out in.

Obedience train the dog.  The top dog has the right to leave lower members of the pack behind.  The key to most behavior problems is approaching things using the dog's natural instincts.  Dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog.  Life is much easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones.  You can learn to play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands with a treat. Start at http://www.dogsbestfriend.com/  For more on being top dog, see http://www.dogbreedinfo.com./topdogrules.htm

You can try giving her a Kong stuffed with peanut butter.  They last a little longer frozen.  She may be too busy licking out the peanut butter to realize you have left.  By the time it is finished, she may just fall asleep.  

Is she spayed?  Doing so should help.  Dogs with behavior problems should never be bred.  

If you are leaving her all ay by herself, try to find a neighbor or professional dog walker to give her a break.  Better yet, let her work her energy off at a doggy day care.